New Delhi, Dec 12 (IANS): Jal Jeevan Mission is facilitating the empowerment of more women in India, especially in the rural areas, said Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday.

Launched in August 2019, the Jal Jeevan Mission aims to provide functional tap water connections to every rural household.

PM Modi said that women can now easily focus on skill development and self-reliance as they need not go long distances to fetch clean water, and can get water at their doorstep.

“A good perspective on how the Jal Jeevan Mission is furthering women empowerment, especially in our rural areas,” PM Modi said in a post on X.

“With clean water at their doorstep, women can now focus on skill development and self-reliance,” he added.

From just 3.23 crore (17 per cent) rural households with tap water connections in 2019, the initiative has successfully added 11.96 crore new connections by October 2024.

Currently, more than 15.35 crore or 79.31 per cent of households have tap water connections, as per the government data.

About 11 states -- Goa, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Daman and Diu and Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Haryana, Puducherry, Telangana, Gujarat, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, and Mizoram -- have had 100 per cent coverage of tap water connection, it showed.

According to a recent research report by the State Bank of India, rural households across the country have seen an 8.3 percentage point decline in fetching water from outside premises. It has led to a 7.4 percentage point increase in women’s participation in agriculture and other productive activities.

The report noted exceptional progress made by states such as Bihar and Assam. The female workforce in these states has risen by over 28 percentage points.